Fishing reel

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a fishing reel ( 10 ) which comprises a reel body ( 12 ), a spool ( 14 ) rotatable relative to the reel body, a handle ( 16 ) for rotating the spool, and a drive bearing ( 32 ) connecting the handle to the spool. The drive bearing ( 32 ) is in the form of a ball-bearing including a plurality of balls ( 34 ) which are mounted to the handle ( 16 ) and which are arranged to rotate so that rotation of the handle ( 16 ) at a first velocity is transferred to the spool ( 14 ) at a second velocity greater than the first velocity.

This application claims priority to South African Patent Application No.99/3002 filed on Apr. 29, 1999 and International Application No.PCT/IB99/01337 filed on Jul. 28, 1999 and published in English asInternational Publication No. WO 00/65909 on Nov. 9, 2000.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

THIS invention relates to a fishing reel.

Conventional fishing reels have a reel body which is attachable to afishing rod, a spool which is rotatable relative to the reel body and ahandle for rotating the spool. Normally, the handle is connected to thespool via a gear which is arranged to transfer rotation of the handle tothe spool. This gear tends to make known fishing reels relativelyexpensive to manufacture and includes a number of wear parts which canbecome damaged or worn.

It is an object of the Present invention to provide a fishing reel withan alternative mechanism for transferring rotation of the handle to thespool which is simple in construction, relatively inexpensive, andstrong and durable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a fishing reel which isoperable in one or more modes comprising:

a reel body;

a spool rotatable relative to the reel body;

a handle for rotating the spool; and

a drive bearing connecting the handle to the spool, the drive bearingincluding a plurality of balls and/or rollers which are mounted to thehandle and which are arranged to rotate in at least one of the one ormore modes of operation so that rotation of the handle at a firstvelocity is transferred to the spool at a second velocity greater thanthe first velocity.

In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of balls and/orrollers are arranged to bear against a pair of spaced-apart bearingraces, one of which is rotatably fixed relative to the reel body, andthe other of which is connected to the spool. In this case, the fishingreel is designed to operate in one mode only.

In another embodiment, one bearing race for the balls and/or rollers isconnected to the spool and another is arranged so that it can beselectively fixed relative to the handle or the reel body. In thisembodiment, the reel can be operated in two modes. In one of the modesof operation the balls and/or rollers are rotatable so that rotation ofthe handle at a first velocity is transferred to the spool at a secondvelocity greater than the first velocity, and in the other mode ofoperation the balls and/or rollers are held between the bearing races sothat rotation of the handle at a first velocity is transferred directlyto the spool at the first velocity.

The bearing race which can be fixed relative to the handle or the reelbody may be located on a rotatable member which is connectable to thereel body or the handle by means of a switching device. In onearrangement, the switching device is axially movable between a firstposition in which it engages the reel body so as to be rotatably fixedrelative to the reel body, and a second position in which it isdisengaged from the reel body and is rotatably fixed relative to thehandle.

Preferably, the reel includes at least one anti-reverse bearing which isarranged to allow the handle to rotate in one direction only.

In a particularly preferred form of the invention, the reel includes anadjustable drag unit which is arranged to apply lateral loads to thespool via the drive bearing so as to resist rotation of the spool. Inthis case, a thrust bearing may be provided between the spool and thereel body.

The drag unit may comprise two members which are threadably engageablewith one another, one of the members being linked to the reel body andthe other of the members being linked to the handle so that suitablerotation of the drag unit members relative to one another causes themembers to be drawn together and to apply a clamping load to the spoolbetween the handle and the reel body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of exampleonly, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a side view of a fishing reel according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view along the line 2—2 in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 show cross-sectional views of a fishing reel according toanother embodiment of the invention; and

FIGS. 5 to 8 show perspective views of various components of the fishingreel illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings illustrate a fishing reel 10 according tothe present invention. The reel 10 is in the form of a centre-pin reeland includes a reel body 12, a spool 14 which is rotatable relative tothe body 12, and a handle 16 for rotating the spool.

The body of the reel 12 carries a connector 18 for connecting the reelto conventional fittings (not shown) on a fishing rod (also not shown).In FIG. 2 of the drawings, the body 12 is seen to include an opening 20which extends through a central region of the reel body to accommodatean adjustable drag unit 22 which is described in more detail below.

A thrust bearing which is designated generally with the referencenumeral 24 is located between the reel body 12 and the spool 14, asillustrated. This bearing is in the form of a ball-bearing and includesa pair of bearing races 26 a and 26 b, a set of balls 28 which arearranged to run along the bearing races, and a carrier 30 for holdingthe balls 28 apart from one another. The bearing race 26 a is fixed tothe reel body 12 and the bearing race 26 b is fixed to the spool 14 sothat these races rotate relative to one another when the spool isrotated relative to the reel body.

On the other side of the spool 14, a drive bearing 32 (also in the formof a ball-bearing) is located between the spool and a portion of thedrag unit 22. The bearing 32 includes a set of balls 34 which aremounted in a circular configuration in apertures 36 in the handle 16 andwhich bear against a pair of bearing races 38 a and 38 b. The bearingrace 38 a is connected to a resilient lining 40 fixed to the drag unit22 and the bearing race 38 b is fixed to the spool 14.

The drag unit 22 comprises a first member 42 and a second member 44. Thefirst member is linked to the reel body 12 and has a threaded shaft 46which is arranged to extend through the opening 20 in the reel body, asshown, and the second member is linked to the handle 16 and defines athreaded socket 48 for threadably engaging the shaft 46 on the firstmember. When the members 42 and 44 are threadably engaged with oneanother in the manner illustrated in FIG. 2, they apply a clamping loadto the spool 14 between the reel body 12 and the handle 16, and thisclamping load serves to provide resistance to the rotation of the spool.

The opening 20 in this embodiment has a square cross section and an endportion 50 of the second drag unit member 44 has a corresponding squarecross section so that when the portion 50 is located within the opening20, the member 44 is rotatably fixed relative to the reel body 12.Accordingly, by rotating the member 42 relative to the reel body 12, themembers 42 and 44 can be drawn towards or away from one another, as thecase may be. It will be appreciated that as the member 44 is drawntowards the member 42, the clamping load applied to the spool 14 isincreased, and as the member 44 is drawn away from the member 42, theclamping load is reduced.

In practice, the drag unit 22 is adjusted so that there is sufficientfriction between the components of the drive bearing 32 to transferrotation of the handle 16 to the spool 14. In this condition of thereel, the handle can be used to wind fishing line (not shown) onto thespool.

Since the bearing race 38 a is fixed to the drag unit member 44, andtherefore is rotatably fixed relative to the reel body 12, rotation ofthe handle 16 in the direction of the arrows A in FIG. 1 causes theballs 34 to rotate in the direction of the arrows B in FIG. 2.Accordingly, in addition to transferring the rotation of the handle 16to the spool 14, the balls 34 also impart their own rotation to thespool, thereby causing the spool to rotate at a faster rate than thehandle. In this way, each complete revolution of the handle results inmore than one complete revolution of the spool, and this allows fishingline to be wound onto the spool relatively quickly.

If while fishing it becomes necessary to allow fishing line off thespool, for example while playing a fish hooked on the line, the dragunit 22 can be adjusted manually by rotating the member 42 so as toapply a suitable resistance to the spool as fishing line is drawn offthe spool.

FIGS. 3 to 8 of the accompanying drawings illustrate another embodimentof the fishing reel according to the present invention. As in the caseof the previous embodiment, the reel 110 includes a reel body 112carrying a connector 118 for connecting the reel to a fishing rod (notshown), a spool 114 which is rotatable relative to the body 112, and ahandle 116 for rotating the spool.

An adjustable drag unit 120 extends through the reel, as shown, andcarries a collar 122 along a portion of its length. The drag unit 120includes a first member 124 which has a partially threaded shank 126extending from a head 128, and a second member 130 defining a head 132and a threaded socket 134 for threadably engaging the shank 126.

A rotatable sleeve 136 is connected to the collar 122 by means of ananti-reverse bearing 138 and has a flange 140 at one end which carries apair of bearing races 142 a and 144 a. A ball-bearing designatedgenerally with the reference numeral 146 is located between the flange140 and the head 128 of the drag unit member 124. This bearing includesthe bearing race 142 a, another bearing race 142 b on the head 128, aset of balls 148 which are arranged to bear against the bearing races142 a and 142 b, and a carrier 150 for holding the balls apart from oneanother.

A drive bearing 152 (also in the form of a ball-bearing) is locatedbetween the flange 140 and the spool 114. This bearing includes thebearing race 144 a, another bearing race 144 b on the spool 114, and aset of balls 156 which are mounted in a circular configuration inapertures 158 in the handle 116 and which bear against the bearing races144 a and 144 b.

The handle 116 and the sleeve 136 are connected to one another by meansof an anti-reverse bearing 160 in a similar fashion to that in which thesleeve 136 is connected to the collar 122.

On the other side of the spool 114, a thrust bearing 162 links the spoolto the reel body. The thrust bearing comprises a bearing race 164 on thespool 114, a bearing race 166 on the reel body 112, and a set of balls168 mounted in a carrier 170.

With reference now also to FIG. 5 of the accompanying drawings whichillustrates the rotatable sleeve 136, a dog 174 extends from an end 176of the sleeve, as illustrated, so as to define a shoulder 178 which issized and shaped to receive a compression coil spring 180 (see FIGS. 3and 4).

FIG. 6 of the drawings illustrates a switching device 182 for allowingthe sleeve 136 to be selectively fixed relative to the reel body 112 orthe handle 116. The device 182 can be seen to include a dog 184 similarto the dog 174 on the sleeve 136. The dogs 174 and 184 are designed tointerlock with one another so as to rotatably fix the sleeve 136relative to the device 182 and simultaneously allow for limited axialdisplacement of these components relative to one another. The switchingdevice 182, similarly to the sleeve 136, defines a shoulder 186 forreceiving the coil spring 180 so that the spring is sandwiched betweenthe sleeve and the switching device. A rough, handle engaging surface188 is provided around the dog 184, as shown, for engaging a similar,rough surface defined on an end 190 of the handle 116, and a pair oflocking limbs 192 (which are illustrated most clearly in FIGS. 3 and 4)are arranged so as to be insertable into and withdrawable from a pair ofcorresponding recesses 194 defined in the reel body 112. The length ofeach recess 194 is substantially greater than the length of each lockinglimb 192 so as to facilitate the entry of these limbs into the recessesduring rotation of the switching device relative to the reel body.

The switching device 182 bears against a Teflon™ washer 198 which inturn bears against an annular member 200 carrying two locating legs 202.The member 200 is illustrated in FIG. 7 in which the legs 202 can beseen to extend radially beyond the outer periphery of the annularmember. The reel body 112 defines a pair of locating grooves (notvisible) which are sized and shaped to receive the portions of the legs202 standing proud of the annular member 200 so that these legs areslidable axially within the grooves. With the legs 202 located withinthe locating grooves, the annular member is axially slidable butrotatably fixed relative to the reel body.

The legs 202 are arranged to bear against two cams 204 on an actuator206 which is illustrated most clearly in FIG. 8. The cams 204 aredesigned so that as the actuator is rotated the legs 202 (and hence theannular member 200) are displaced axially to the left or to the right inFIGS. 3 and 4, as the case may be. Each cam includes an end stop 212 forlimiting the rotational displacement of the actuator 206 relative to thelegs 202.

In use, the fishing reel 110 can be operated in two modes. In a firstmode, the locking limbs 192 on the switching device 182 are seatedwithin the recesses 194 in the reel body 112, as shown in FIG. 3. Inthis condition of the reel, the switching device 182 is rotatably fixedto the reel body by means of the limbs 192 and rotatably fixed to thesleeve 136 by means of the dogs 172 and 184 so that the sleeve isrotatably fixed relative to the reel body. Rotation of the handle 116 inthis mode causes the set of balls 156 to rotate so that, in addition totransferring the rotation of the handle 116 to the spool 114, the balls156 also impart their own rotation to the spool. In this way, the spoolis caused to rotate at a faster rate than that of the handle so thateach complete revolution of the handle results in more than one completerevolution of the spool. When fishing line is drawn off the spool, forexample when line is released while playing a fish, the handle 116 isprevented from rotating by the anti-reverse bearing 160.

To adjust the reel into the second mode of operation, the actuator 206is rotated so that the cams 204 displace the legs 202 axially along thelocator grooves in the reel body, thereby displacing the annular member200 from the FIG. 3 position to the FIG. 4 position. As the annularmember is displaced in this manner, it forces the washer 198 and theswitching device 182 to the left in FIGS. 3 and 4 until the lockinglimbs 192 are withdrawn from the recesses 194, as illustrated in FIG. 4.When this occurs the coil spring between the device 182 and the sleeve136 is compressed and the surface 188 on the switching device bearsagainst the surface 190 on the handle. In this condition, the handle isfixed to the switching device and the sleeve so that the threecomponents rotate together when the handle is rotated. Since the sleeve136 is no longer fixed relative to the reel body, in this mode the balls156 do not rotate when the handle is rotated, and consequently therotation of the handle 112 is transferred directly to the spool 114 withno multiplication effect. Accordingly, for every complete revolution ofthe handle 116, there is a corresponding complete revolution of thespool 114. In this mode of the reel, the anti-reverse bearing 138prevents the handle from rotating when fishing line is drawn off thereel.

To return the reel 110 to the first mode, the actuator 206 is simplyrotated back to the position illustrated in FIG. 3. When this occurs,the coil spring 180 biases the switching device away from the sleeve 136so that as the locking limbs become aligned with the recesses 194 duringrotation of the handle, the limbs are forced into the recesses torotatably lock the switching device relative to the reel body. Asmentioned above, the recesses 194 are substantially longer than thelocking limbs 192 so as to facilitate the entry of the limbs into therecesses during rotation of the handle.

The drag unit 120 can be adjusted by rotation of the members 124 and 130relative to one another so as to increase or decrease the friction forcebetween the balls 156 and the bearing race 154.

It will be appreciated that the mechanism for transferring rotation ofthe handle to the spool in either of the embodiments of the inventiondescribed above is simple in construction and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture. Also, the construction of this mechanism renders it strongand durable.

What is claimed is:
 1. A fishing reel which is operable in one or moremodes comprising: a reel body; a spool rotatable relative to the reelbody; a handle for rotating the spool; and a drive bearing connectingthe handle to the spool, the drive bearing including a plurality ofrollers which are mounted to the handle and which are arranged to rotatein at least one of the one or more modes of operation so that rotationof the handle at a first velocity is transferred to the spool, by meansof the rollers, at a second velocity greater than the first velocity. 2.A fishing reel according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of rollersare arranged to bear against a pair of spaced-apart bearing races, oneof which is rotatably fixed relative to the reel body, and the other ofwhich is connected to the spool.
 3. A fishing reel according to claim 2,wherein at least some of the rollers comprise balls.
 4. A fishing reelaccording to claim 1, wherein the plurality of rollers are arranged tobear against a pair of spaced-apart bearing races, one of which isconnected to the spool, and the other of which is arranged so that itcan be selectively fixed relative to the handle or the reel body.
 5. Afishing reel according to claim 3, wherein the bearing race which can befixed relative to the handle or the reel body is located on a rotatablemember which is connectable to the reel body or the handle by means of aswitching device.
 6. A fishing reel according to claim 5, wherein theswitching device is axially movable between a first position in which itengages the reel body so as to be rotatably fixed relative to the reelbody, and a second position in which it is disengaged from the reel bodyand is rotatably fixed relative to the handle.
 7. A fishing reelaccording to claim 4, wherein at least some of the rollers compriseballs.
 8. A fishing reel according to claim 1, including an adjustabledrag unit which is arranged to apply lateral loads to the spool via thedrive bearing.
 9. A fishing reel according to claim 8, including athrust bearing between the spool and the reel body.
 10. A fishing reelaccording to claim 9, wherein the drag unit comprises two members whichare threadably engageable with one another, one of the members beinglinked to the reel body and the other of the members being linked to thehandle.
 11. A fishing reel according to claim 8, wherein the drag unitcomprises two members which are threadably engageable with one another,one of the members being linked to the reel body and the other of themembers being linked to the handle.
 12. A fishing reel according toclaim 1, wherein at least some of the rollers comprise balls.